All Saints Hove

The present parishes of Hove and Preston had been united as a single benefice, Hove-cum-Preston, since 1531. St Andrew's Church, of Saxon origin but rebuilt from a near-derelict state in 1836 in response to the area's growing population, had served as Hove-cum-Preston's parish church. When the parish was separated into two new areas serving Hove and Preston respectively in 1879, St Andrew's status was changed to that of parish church of Hove. However, when Revd Thomas Peacey was appointed the first vicar of Hove in the same year, he immediately showed his intention of replacing it with a new, more impressive church by selecting the prominent ecclesiastical architect John Loughborough Pearson to submit a design. Construction did not begin until 1889, with the first stone being laid on 25 April 1889; and is now the Coptic Orthodox church of St Mary and St Abraam. The area covered by the parish of Hove All Saints covers most of eastern Hove to the border with Brighton, stretches from the seafront to the A270 Old Shoreham Road and is one of the most populous parishes in the Chichester diocese. ==Architecture==

All Saints is an imposing church—one of the largest of the 19th-century Gothic revival—and bears some resemblance to one of John Loughborough Pearson's largest ecclesiastical projects, Truro Cathedral. Pearson used local sandstone for the exterior, in contrast to the knapped flintwork and red brick decoration of his other Hove church, St Barnabas; and the predominant architectural style, the Early English Decorated style, is also markedly different from his other major churches, mostly in the London area. The interior is also of stone, usually only seen in the grandest of mediaeval buildings, and the great roof is constructed of Sussex oak. The narthex at the western end leads through to a very wide nave with aisles and tall arcades on both sides (likened by Pevsner to those of Exeter Cathedral) and a chancel with side chapels. One of these is separated from the body of the church by a canopied screen of great richness carved in wood, dedicated to people from the parish killed in the First World War. The church is dominated by a stone reredos carved by Nathaniel Hitch and installed in 1908. Pearson used a clever conceit in the design of the church to produce a visual concentration on the reredos, and the east end of the church was described by the architect Harry Stuart Goodhart-Rendel "as nearly perfect as can be". Nikolaus Pevsner described the building as "superb and cathedral-like". Other internal fixtures include oak choir stalls and canopies designed by Frank Loughborough Pearson in memory of Thomas Peacey, a stone pulpit and red marble seven sided font. ==All Saints Hove today==

The church is regularly open to casual visitors, and is often used as a venue for live music, in addition to holding services several days a week. Sunday school and crèche facilities are also provided. ==Vicarage==

The last vicar of the united parish of Hove-cum-Preston, Revd Walter Kelly, had built a vicarage for the parish, but after the split it lay within the boundaries of Preston parish. Revd Peacey acted quickly to get Hove its own vicarage, obtaining land from the estate of the Stanford family upon which both a vicarage and a church could be built. The Stanfords had acquired large areas of land around Preston and Hove in the 18th century, after Preston Manor had come into the family, but by the late 19th century much of it was being developed for residential use. A plot of land in the area then known as "West Brighton", on the corner of the roads which became Eaton Road and The Drive, was secured, and John Loughborough Pearson was asked to design and build a vicarage that would complement the church although its design predated that of the church as built by several years. The red-brick building, constructed in 1883, has elements of the Renaissance style of 400 years previously and is listed at Grade II. ==Gallery==

Image:All Saints Hove west end exterior view.jpg|The west elevation, showing the narthex, west window, and incomplete tower Image:All Saints Church, Eaton Road, Hove 06.JPG|The southern elevation, looking to the northeast Image:All Saints Hove sanctuary.jpg|High altar, reredos, sedilia, and part of the east window Image:All Saints Hove choir stalls.jpg|High altar, reredos, and sedilia, as seen from the south choir stalls Image:All Saints Hove nave.jpg|Nave, looking east Image:All Saints Hove organ case and north window.jpg|The double-fronted gothic organ case, designed by the architect's son, and north transept (rose) window Image:All Saints Hove Hill pipe organ.jpg|Chancel façade of the pipe organ Image:All Saints Hove east end exterior view.jpg|View of the east end including chapel apse, east window and towers Image:All Saints Church, Eaton Road, Hove 09.JPG|Small spire on the eastern end Image:All Saints Church, Eaton Road, Hove 04.JPG|The west window, commemorating King Edward VII Image:All Saints Hove west window.jpg|West window, viewed from inside Image:All Saints Church, Eaton Road, Hove 07.JPG|One of the stained glass windows on the southern elevation Image:All Saints Hove south transept window.jpg|South window, viewed from inside Image:All Saints, Hove glass 27.jpg|North window of the narthex, designed by Martin Travers ==See also==